Funding

Salary

Program dates

TBA

Fellowship•Canada · Montreal · Hybrid

Mila AI Policy Fellowship

Mila — Quebec Artificial Intelligence Institute

Application Deadline

Closed · April 16, 2026

Reopens ~Apr 2027

Official Page

The Mila AI Policy Fellowship is run by the Mila AI Policy Secretariat together with Mila AI Advisors. Mila is a Montreal AI research institute founded on the lab Yoshua Bengio started in 1993, born of a collaboration between Université de Montréal and McGill University, and now home to more than 1,400 people. The fellowship asks people from public policy, law, the social sciences and the humanities to spend six months, September to February, on one AI policy question and to turn the answer into guidance decision-makers can act on. Fellows commit fifteen hours a week, keep their existing job or affiliation, and are each paired with a Mila AI Advisor and a member of the policy secretariat. Delivery is hybrid: most work is remote, and required in-person activities take place in Montreal, including Mila AI Policy Week. The inaugural 2025–2026 cohort took in thirteen fellows, whose briefs on chatbot safety, the EU AI Act, election law and quantum technology are published on Mila’s site.

Benefits & funding

  • Paid at an hourly rate for a dedicated fifteen hours per week. The rate moves within a set range according to profile and experience; Mila does not publish the range.
  • No application fee. Participation is fully funded, and all travel and event costs tied to the required in-person components are covered.
  • Each fellow is paired with one or more Mila AI Advisors plus a member of the AI Policy Secretariat.
  • Visa support: if a selected fellow needs a visa for the in-person component, Mila backs the application.
  • Monthly meetings with advisors, monthly cohort sessions, and the in-person Mila AI Policy Week in Montreal.
  • Fellows publish a policy brief under the Mila banner and present it to the Mila research community.
  • Deliverables are fixed: a 6–8 page policy brief, an expert roundtable or workshop for external stakeholders, a Mila Policy Talk, a dissemination plan, and a 10-page internal research report summary.

Eligibility

  • Open to applicants worldwide. There is no nationality requirement and no requirement to be based in Canada.
  • A graduate degree (MSc, MA or equivalent) in a relevant field such as public policy, law, ethics, AI, sociology or economics.
  • At least three years of professional or academic experience.
  • Demonstrated policy-related experience or expertise, either through roles that interface with policy-making or through subject-matter expertise.
  • An original, relevant and feasible project proposal with strong subject knowledge and real-world policy potential.
  • Experience with interdisciplinary or multi-stakeholder initiatives counts as an asset, not a requirement.
  • The working languages are English and French.
  • Availability for fifteen hours a week from September to February, and for the required in-person activities in Montreal.
  • No age limit is stated.

Can you apply?

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  • Education required

    Master · PhD

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  • Experience required

    ≥ 3 yrs

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Application process

  1. 1
    Register for the virtual information session; the 2026 round held it on 8 April, 10–11 AM.
  2. 2
    Pick one of the thematic areas, or prepare a topic outside them with a clear case for its AI policy relevance, feasibility and impact.
  3. 3
    Create an account on Mila’s Awards Platform application portal.
  4. 4
    Complete the application form and upload the project proposal (about two pages, 1,000 words maximum), one published writing sample such as an academic publication, policy brief or professional article, the contact details of one reference, and a CV.
  5. 5
    Submit before the deadline: the 2026 round closed on 16 April at midnight, anywhere on Earth.
  6. 6
    Shortlisted candidates may be invited to a brief interview before final decisions.

Program timeline

  1. Virtual information session

    8 April 2026

  2. Application deadline, midnight anywhere on Earth

    16 April 2026

  3. Fellowship begins

    September 2026

  4. Fellowship ends

    February 2027

  5. Applications open for the following cohort

    Spring 2027 (expected, not yet published)